Military coverage of the War—‘the Glorious News’

By Joan Wenner, J.D. · Originally published October 2021 · p. 39

The Gettysburg weekly, The Adams Sentinel, was one media outlet, especially in June and July 1863, that took its reporting very seriously as did many other media companies of the day both large and regional. Editor Robert G. Harper had a home and office on a Gettysburg street, just a stone’s throw away from the residence of prominent attorney David Wills where Lincoln had stayed the night before delivering his famous address.

When returning to his printing press to report on the momentous 1863 battle, he included in the July 7 edition an apology to subscribers for their not receiving an issue since June 23, though the absence could hardly be unexpected due to the tumultuous events that had been transpiring. Our Apology Even in those extraordinary days, he would write of some local people who joined the Union ranks, “…who with indifference to surroundings, pursued the even tenor of their way, and met and discharged their accustomed duties, may consistently find fault.”

This despite the glaring headlines like Gettysburg and the War and Killed and Wounded, along with his reporting on the ebb and flow of the ‘great battle’ and references to particular residents as “shot and shell, grape and canister from both, darkened the air in every direction.” Read the actual text of the heartfelt apology in total online in a July 12, 2019, post by writer Codie Nash at: https://www.penncivilwar.com/ post/a-terrible-and-yet-glorious-reality. The Adams Sentinel was published on time throughout the remainder of the war. Then on Tuesday evening, April 11, 1865, Harper ran the bold print headlines: “The War Nearly

Over!” “BRIGHT SKIES! Lee Surrendered—And His Whole Army! Robert Harper continued his reporting as editor until 1867.

Joan Wenner, J.D. is a longtime contributor to the Civil War News with a law degree. She is also a book reviewer. Her email is: [email protected].